Fire engulfs downtown Portland church with roof & steeple collapse after people ripped open doors in search for victims
Olivia House
Published Sep 22, 2026
A FIRE has engulfed a church in Portland causing the roof and a steeple to collapse after the doors were ripped open in search of victims.
The blaze broke out just after 5pm local time when the church's doors were torn open by passersby looking for occupants.
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Portland Fire and Rescue tweeted in an update that the main body of fire in the three-alarm blaze is believed to have been extinguished as of about 6.30pm local time.
However, Portland officials also said that there is a possibility of a structural collapse.
There is concern that the church wall could collapse and take down streetcar power lines that are overhead.
Portland fire officials have begun discussing “a different suppression strategy” as they remain on the scene.
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Firefighters were on the scene within seconds after citizens broke open the church doors looking for possible occupants, according to CBS affiliate KOIN.
The outlet also reported that the right steeple of the church collapsed just before 6pm.
The blaze is at SW 10th Avenue and Clay Street, per Portland Fire and Rescue, which is reportedly the location of an abandoned church.
FOX12 reports that the former Portland Korean Church - initially the First German Evangelical Church - was completed in 1905.
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The church has been the site of several fires over the last few years, according to KOIN.
Residents are asked to avoid the area as fire crews remain on the scene.
